UpSTARt – Free Workshop for New Students!

The NTPA UpSTARt Workshop is a free 2-hour workshop designed for the “new student” who wants to learn more about being a star on an NTPA stage! This fast-paced, high-energy, and fun-filled workshop will give your future actor the confidence to “take the stage” and the training so that they know what to expect!

Overview

The NTPA UpSTARt Workshop is taught by an NTPA professional Director with a degree in the performing arts. Our Directors are trained to work with students to encourage their passion for the arts and create a fun and exciting theatre experience. Students age 5 and above are invited to attend one workshop FREE of CHARGE on a first-come basis. There will be no more than fifteen (15) attendees per workshop. Attendees are encouraged to be onsite no less than ten minutes before the workshop start-time.

There is no preparation required in advance of the workshop. Participants will want to wear comfortable clothing that allows active movement, and come ready to have a lot of fun!

Each of our Workshops consists of two sessions

Student Session: A 90-minute, high-energy audition prep workshop for students 5-18. Parents are not expected to remain during this session and may return for the Parent Session.

Parent Session: Following the Student Session, this fast-paced 30-minute briefing talks through what it means to be an NTPA parent, expectations and possible next steps.

Why is NTPA Offering This Program?

Any new endeavor can create worry or anxiety for both the student and the parent. Too often we hear parents say they want their children to “try out” the performing arts, but don’t know where to start. They also don’t want to invest a lot of time and money in an activity that may not excite or interest their student.

NTPA’s UpSTARt Workshop is intended to give the student and parent the confidence to want to try to “take the stage”. It will provide the basic tools and techniques to enable them to decide if they want to further pursue this activity, and give them the confidence and enthusiasm to enjoy the fun and excitement offered by the performing arts!

Workshop Details

This fast-paced, high-energy and fun-filled workshop will move through a lot of “theatre basics” in a short period of time. After attending the workshop, the student should be able to confidently complete an NTPA audition.

Student Session

During this 90-minute workshop, the student will engage in:

“Power On”: This fast-paced “Theatre Game” to creates the mood and energy for the workshop. This high-energy game will allow the students to introduce themselves and get comfortable with the other participants.

Power Warm-Up: This exercise gets the voice, body and heart pumping and ready, and is typical of a preparation technique used in a real show rehearsal.

The Actors Toolkit: This exercise introduces the three tools of an actor, and provides a quick exercise employing pantomime and improvisation to illustrate the power of the voice, the body and the imagination of a performing artist.

Upstage Basics: This topic talks through “stage basics” and introduces a vocabulary for the student to begin to understand “stage-speak”!

Audition Action: This session explains the role of the audition, and what a student is expected to do during the audition process. It explores the song and monologue to best represent the student’s skills and rehearses some standard audition forms.

Parent Session

Immediately following the student session, the Director will engage the parents in a fast-paced thirty-minute discussion and provide a handout as a guide to:

Overview of a typical audition process and what to expect.

Steps to take to prepare your student for the audition process.

Tools and resources available so that you can enjoy the activity.

What to expect in an NTPA production … time, financial and other planning.

Next steps to “take the stage”!

Where and When

NTPA’s UpSTARt Workshop will be offered in each of the North Texas Performing Arts facilities every month.

North Texas Performing Arts – Frisco
First Sunday of each month, 2:00-4:00 PM

Willow Bend Center of the Arts
Second Saturday of each month, Noon-2:00 PM